Last night's broomball game was brutal. We lost 2-0. I don't feel like I'm entirely to blame, though. Our defense was a little rough to say the least, and I was left facing 2-man rushes on more than one occasion. With our defense struggling, it doesn't give our offense a chance to take the ball down the ice and generate scoring opportunities, which compounds the problem. I'm hoping as our new players gain more a little more experience, we'll be able to spend more time in control of the ball.

Mike has a great idea for getting people to read the police blotter.

The Anchorage Daily News recently reported that Anchorage Police Officers will not be responding to minor fender-benders. They are time consuming for officers and the people involved. According to the article: Besides freeing up officers to focus on more serious calls, the change will also free up space. The department's forensics lab currently contains, among other things, 750,000 images of such crashes. For some reason, I really want to see those photos. It seems like it would be very fascinating.

After getting nice tour of Brandeis University from a recent graduate, I was reminded of Infiltration, a zine about going the places you're not supposed to. After reading up, my desire to get underneath my own campus has increased. There is a network of utility corridors that connect many campus buildings, and construction projects that are begging to be explored.

Actually, they only suck when they don't do what they're supposed to even though all evidence suggests that they should.

I was trying to use Final Cut Pro today. I imported video from MiniDV and then began to edit. It wasn't long before I noticed that there was no sound coming from the application. Other applications offered sound, but not Final Cut Pro. There was sound in the footage, because it showed up in waveform view, and the audio levels window, but nothing came out of the speakers. I finally gave up in frustration and will probably just use iMovie, since my edits aren't that complex.

This link comes courtesty of What Do I Know. This one's for Mike: It's collection of three typefaces called Luxury. Fancy typefaces for a fancy price: $1,500.

Dashboard Confessional's new album A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar had me worried. I was a little disappointed with the previous album, Swiss Army Romance, was mostly the same songs he'd done before with a band and on a new label. The first single for the new album was Hands Down, a song that he'd performed before on MTV Unplugged and from the So Impossible EP. I was worried that the other songs on the album would also be old songs with the new band, but that's not the case. Except for Hands Down (my favorite DC song), the rest are new.

A company called Drink Safe Labs is selling GHB and Ketamine detecting cards to test your drink. While this seems pretty innocuous I think there are ramifications the company didn't really think of.

One of the testimonials says: I met Samantha and we instantly clicked, she became such a "good friend" that she helped me get a job with her and her boyfriend, and it all seemed perfectly normal. I did not know during this time that Kirk had a secret crush on me, and that Samantha was well aware of it. One day Kirk and Samantha decided to get an apartment and move in together in the town we all grew up in, a small town on Long Island. I was quite flattered that Samantha invited me over for dinner the minute the stuff was unpacked, and I took her up on the offer. The story goes on to say that Samantha drugged her drink and told Kirk to have his fantasy. He didn't but now the girl is paranoid, perhaps rightly so.

I just don't think that these testers would have helped this girl. She says she was good friends with this Samantha. So for this product to have any benefit, you'd have to test the drinks given to you by your best friends. Who's going to show up for a dinner party and drop a slip of paper in their white zinfendel? If someone did that to me I'd be a little put off. Thanks for the trust.

I'm pretty sure there are enough paranoid people to buy this product, and they'll have to buy lots because each tester is only good for one test, but for normal people who trust their friends, it just doesn't seem like it would do any good.

The student government provides free hot beverages. They've got all the standards: tea, coffee and hot chocolate, but they also have hot apple cider. It's a great way to celebrate the first snowfall of the year (which was today).

OK. I fell for it. The recent photos that I thought were of Hurricane Isabel are fraudulent.

As a resident of the State of Alaska, I get a check each year. This year, the check is worth $1,107.56. Last year was over $1,500, and a couple years ago it was over $1,900.

The money comes from the state's Permanent Fund (warning, 3rd-grade level web site) and dividends are issued each year to all qualified residents (kind of like a corporation giving dividends to stockholders). The amount of the dividend is based on the average of five years of earnings. That's why there is a sharp decrease now, even though the dot-bomb was several years ago. Unless the stock market really rallies this year, next year's dividend will be even smaller. With a total fund value north of $25 Billion, the state can afford to give checks to all 598,000 or so qualified residents.

Assuming an 8-hour work day and 5-day work week, the state is essentially paying its residents 53 cents an hour this year. The peak year (2000, $1963.86), the hourly "wage" was 94.5 cents an hour.

Last night was a pretty poor game of broomball. Actually, it was pretty good considering over half of our team is new to the sport. It was 0-0 tie. We all need to work on communicating with each other on the ice, and moving the ball down the ice while in control of it, rather than just smacking it and hoping someone from our team can get to it before someone from the other team. I think things will get better once the new members get their "ice legs" and become more comfortable sliding around.

The good news is the sliding rule has been modified which means that we don't have to worry about having half our team in the penalty box. Now we're allowed to slide as long as no human-human contact is made. It's not the best result, but it's much better than before, and I suppose certain compromises need to be made in order to prevent someone from suing the university.

A group of college students show up at a party and everyone has disappeared. Now they have to survive an onslaught of zombies. This has been done before, and I don't think there's much room for a new entry. Especially if the film is as bad as the trailer makes it look. How can so many people in Hollywood be making money and so few people with decent, original ideas?

Mike and I had this idea to create a CD based on a walking tour of a city. Our CD was going to be entirely music-based, more of an experiential thing instead of informative. Now, someone has created self-guided tours of different areas in New York (free NYT registration required).

This kind of thing is a truly multimedia experience. Instead of getting just some flat photos and video with some voices and music, you're seeing the environment in a truly 3-D and realtime way, with the added bonus of tactile sensations depending on weather conditions and time of day.

I can't wait until I move to New York so I can try one of those tours.

I came across these photos today:

Mother Nature rocks.

Last November I attempted to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days (1,666 words per day average). Unfortunately, I only made it to about 35,000. This year, I'll finish. If anyone is interested in joining me for this creative blitzkreig, all the necessary information is available at http://www.nanowrimo.org. I'll be posting more about this as I begin planning my story, something I didn't do last year that I think contributed to my lack of finishing, and especially as I start writing.

Greg Mitchell, editor of Editor and Publisher, said he got into media through comics: When I was a kid in the late '50s, I was an enormous fan of Superman, the TV show and comic books. But I was probably one of the rare people who wanted to grow up to be Clark Kent instead of Superman.

I thought I was the only person more interested in the adventures of Peter Parker and Bruce Wayne, than Spider-man or Batman. I like reading comics that place a lot of emphasis on the people dealing with the decisions they've made and the consequences of their actions, rather than focusing on the ass-kicking and one-liners. With Brian Michael Bendis writing on Ultimate Spider-man and Daredevil, those comics have (in my opinion) gotten much better. Kevin Smith's run on Daredevil and then Green Arrow also elevated those series. Warren Ellis also writes compelling characters like Spider Jerusalem (from Transmetropolitan -- read it). More emphasis needs to be placed on character instead of action. And not only in comics.

The league administration have dictated a new rule for Broomball players: no sliding. What that means is that you can't (intentionally) drop to your knees, or dive to reach the ball. The reason for instituting the rule was that people would slide and being on ice, not be able to stop before clipping some else's legs from underneath them (a potentially hazardous situation). Since sliding has become a well-used tactic by players of all skill levels, it has been hard to stop for many, leading to penalties, even when there is no risk of injury. Some refs have even put people in the penalty box for accidentally falling when no one is around.

One team member is taking matters into his own hands. He recently collected over 100 signatures (nearly all of the broomball players) on a petition to abolish the no-slide rule, and instead limit penalties to instances when sliding poses a risk to the safety of other players. It is hoped that this petition will be effective and the league administration will adopt the proposed policy change.

It's well after the self-imposed deadline for joining my Mix Tape Exchange, so you might be wondering where the mix tapes are. Since no one responded, there are no mix tapes. I'll probably try to do this again in the future, but for now I'll wait until a few more people find the new blog. You can still e-mail me and express your interest, though, the exchange just won't be as formal.

The college radio station I manage recently started closed-circuit cable TV operations. As a result, I've had to take on tasks that I wouldn't have had before. I don't mind so much, because I enjoy shooting video and editing (why else would I be taking TV Production?).

My problem is that when I shoot video of a volleyball game it takes two hours to capture the footage to the computer. Then I can go through the video and throw in the score at certain points throughout the match. Then it takes another two hours to get the footage from the computer back to MiniDV. Then it takes another two hours to get the footage from MiniDV to VHS so that it can be broadcast by our system throughout campus.

Of course, all of this has to happen during the weekend so it can be broadcast during week. It adds up to me spending almost 12 hours on a Sunday that would be perfectly good for sleeping.

Someone better be documenting the ongoing struggle between the Seattle Times and Post-Intelligencer. This subject seems to have more drama than daytime TV and more politics than C-SPAN. It's ripe to be butchered by a Hollywood producer with a multi-million dollar budget, but I'd rather see it as a proper documentary. It would also make great reality TV, but we're too far along in the process to start a show. That would be like trying to watch every third episode of Survivor.

After my trip to Maine, I've earned enough mileage to be an MVP. I'm a card-carrying member of the Jet Set!

Nikon N80 35mm Camera, great for beginning or experienced photographers. Includes 38-80mm Lens, 50mm Lens, 105mm Lens, several filters, 2x teleconverter (105mm becomes 210mm), Vivtar 283 flash, detachable shoulder strap, soft shoulder case, hard weatherproof case and other accessories. $450 for entire package. e-mail me.

First, a joke: Did you hear about that new Pirate movie? I heard it's rated Arr!

Cheesy? Yes. Relevant? Considering tomorrow is International Talk Like a Pirate Day, then yes.

The second link is for a reader poll in The Hill: Which political figure looks most like Skeletor?

Both links courtesy Sara.

Last night at approximately 9:25 p.m., while my TV Production Class was wrapping up, my broomball teammates earned a 2-0 win. I wish I could have been there. As much fun as we have when we lose, it's so much better to win.

"Get my label off the ground like David Blaine."

I heard it this morning on one of my roommate's CDs: Max Bedroom "In The Club." It's a compilation and I couldn't find any liner notes, so I don't know the name of the MC. Max Bedroom, I think, is the DJ. It caught my ear because of David Blaine's recent stunt in London.

"After several governments, hundreds of lawyers, and still more trustbusters worked for nearly a decade to put an end to Microsoft�s monopolistic behaviour and predation, a federal court in Chicago hands a cornerstone of the Web experience to Microsoft on a silver platter."

Read a very good take by Jeffrey Zeldman.

The organization that names hurricaines has their stuff together. They've got lists of names ready for the next several years. When will one be named after you? Find out. Unfortunately, there's no foreseeable hurricaine named after me. Thanks Sara for the link.

Apple today announced an upgraded PowerBook line and wireless (Bluetooth) keyboard and mouse. Within the last week the iPod capacities were changed to 10-, 20- and 40-Gb.

All of this advancement makes me wonder if anyone else reacts the same way I do to these announcements. My heart-rate seriously increases, my mouth hangs open, and my body completely tenses. I suppose these are all symptoms of a deeper problem: unhealthy amounts of desire for sleek, well-designed technology.

A German shephard from Alaska is headed to Los Angeles to receive a canine heroism award. The dog, named Shadow, was nominated for another hero-dog award. According to the same story: In April, Kibbles 'n Bits named Shadow its second runner-up in the Dog Hero of the Year. In that contest, Shadow won $200 for Mobley but lost out to Bullet, a golden retriever in New York who alerted his owner that her baby had stopped breathing, and to Mandy, a mixed breed in Ohio who woke her owners when their house caught fire.

I think Shadow got robbed. He should of at least got first runner-up from Kibbles 'n Bits. How hard can it be to bark a few times when the house is being engulfled by flames? It can't be harder than attacking a grizzly bear. Then again, we used to have a corgie (not more than a foot tall) who wanted to take on a black bear, so maybe going paw to paw with a bear isn't a big deal for dogs.

Broomball season has started once again! Our season opener was close, but we couldn't hold off their offense forever and lost 1 goal to zero. At one point, I was one-on-one with an offender. He was trying to get around me to score a goal and I managed to stay in front of him and block the shot. Unfortunately, I stopped it with my groin. It's been a while since I've taken a beating there, and I was amazed at how much it hurt, and stayed hurting. I'll be wearing some protection next time. I also took a shot to the head, and judging by the way my jaw feels today, it must have been moving at a pretty good clip. I'll try to get some photos or video of the game in the future.

When I went to Maine, I rode my bike to the airport and locked it up outside the terminal. I got a ride home from the airport when I returned because it was dark and I don't have proper lighting on the back of my bike. I finally made it back to the terminal to pick up my bike and someone had stolen my bungee cords that I use to hold stuff to the rack over the rear tire. I wasn't terribly surprised since it had been there for three weeks, but I was still disappointed. Bungee cords aren't expensive, but I guess if you're at the airport and need a quick fastener, what are you going to do, right?

Any fans of The Red Green Show will appreciate these songs about everyone's favorite tape. Link courtesy of Peretz.

I scanned a small selection of the five rolls of color film I shot while on vacation. I've got two rolls of black and white that will take some time to get processed since all of the local photo shops have to send it out of town. Check out the current crop of photos here.

I dropped off a garbage bag full of clothes today and then went to Value Village and bought a few shirts. I was eyeing a nice looking Kenneth Cole shirt and almost didn't buy it because it was $9.99. Then I realized that it would probably retail for $40-50, so I pulled it off the rack and brought it to the register along with three others. The total for four shirts (two of which were Kenneth Cole) was only $30. Not a bad pull.

I just finished operating one of three cameras for AlaskaONE's current pledge drive. It was awesome to work in the TV studio during a live broadcast and be a part of it. I didn't have time to borrow a digital camera and take photos, but even more than visual documentation, I wish I could have gotten audio of the intercom chatter among the technical crew. Although there wasn't much interaction with me (I just took a few commands from the director like "zoom out" and "pan left"), there were constant updates as the broadcast progressed, like "Coming in on two, standby two ... standby three, dissolve to three, standby two .... dissolve to two ... wrap to David ... going to David, standby one ... dissolve to one" etc. etc. The entire crew was very good-natured and joked among one another before and after the live segments, but while on air, everyone was collected and professional. Although I hadn't thought much about a career in broadcasting, I really did enjoy my experience... perhaps now I'll consider the possibility...

Rollerblade Police. I don't think having police on rollerblades - er, inline skates - is very effective, especially if they're only working four-hour shifts and not when it rains. It seems like bicycle officers combined with foot patrols would be more effective, both law enforcement-wise and financially.

ABC News shipped just under 15 pounds of depleted Uranium from Jakarta, Indonesia to Los Angeles in order to test the security. The Department of Homeland Security is critizing the news team and even considering filing charges, calling the test a crime. ABC and the Washington Post have stories.

Homeland Security Department spokesman Dennis Murphy says, "Does a news organization have a right to break the law? Can a reporter rob a bank to prove that bank security is weak? My understanding of journalistic ethics is you don't break the law in pursuit of news." My question is does a police department have a right to buy drugs (an illegal activitity) in order to arrest a dealer?

I'm not even a week into this semester and I'm already experiencing burn out. This isn't good. Having class at 6 p.m. four nights a week is not a good plan. I end up coming to my office and checking e-mail, various web sites and intersperse some work in there, too. My day starts by 9 a.m. and I don't get to leave campus until at least 9 p.m. Every day at about 4:30 or 5, I begin feeling wiped out. Fortunately, I usually wake up for class, but I don't know how long that's going to last.

There is good news, although unrelated: I got more pictures from my trip to New York earlier this year and my pictures from Maine should be processed tomorrow or Friday. I'll work on getting some galleries up very soon.

According to an article in today's Seattle Times, the three-years of financial loss the paper has suffered under the Joint Operating Agreement with the P-I may be the result of creative accounting. Although no laws were broken, it remains to be seen how this will affect the JOA. via Romenesko

Ever since I returned from Maine, a whole 4 days ago, I've been waking up earlier than I'm used to. I woke up at 7 a.m. today. It's barely 4 o'clock and I feel like going to bed. Unfortunately I've got class in two hours. That will last two hours and then I need to travel the 1.5 miles home and watch the 11 o'clock news for my TV production class. Ugh.

The Joint Operating Agreement between the Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer is under more stress now that a document has been uncovered that states the demise of the agreement has been a goal of the Times since 1985. Also, the Times declined to run an advertisement for the Committee for a Two Newspaper Town. The organization supports the continuation of the JOA.

Here it is, the Bible for teenage girls. No, it's not a subscription to Cosmo or Glamour, it's actually a bible.

aside: Reading the news is so much fun, why haven't I been doing it all along?

I just got back from my TV Production class. We're going to be spending almost half of our class-time at a local TV station observing their newscast, and then reproducing ourselves. We're going to learn lighting, directing, shooting, anchoring and all other kinds of awesome TV stuff. We'll be doing our shooting with Canon XL-1s, so I'll probably be able to get web-sized clips for the site.

I'm starting a mix tape exchange group. It's going to work like this: each month one person on the list will send a mix tape (or CD) to everyone else on the list. I'm limiting the first rotation to five other people in order to keep postal costs reasonable. After the rotation (approx. six months from now) we can decide to expand the membership to get more people involved. ...

I'm going to randomly select five people from the list. In order to get on the list you need to e-mail curt at themerrills dot com with "mix tape exchange" as the subject and the following information in the message body:
Name
City, State (sorry, U.S. only for the first rotation)
Two of your all-time favorite recording artists
Two artists that you have in heavy-rotation right now

I'll compile the list based on e-mails that are received before September 16, 2003, then choose randomly (rather, as random as a computer can be) and e-mail the five people chosen to get mailing addresses and start the rotation. If there are less than five entries, then those will be the people, no random choosing necessary. The first mix will be sent in October. The track-list for each mix will be posted here for the benefit of others who are interested.

Send an e-mail to the address above if you have any questions or comments.

Today's Wall Street Journal has an article about Coca-Cola fighting to maintain growth in Japan. One service they've introduced in the far east is Cmode, which they plan to bring to the US. The interesting part of the article though, is this: Beverage makers try to keep pace with Japan's fad-driven culture by launching more than a thousand new drinks each year. That's at least three new drinks a day. How would someone keep up?

Does your newspaper run Doonesbury? Did it run this Sunday? According to this article in the Sacramento Bee many newspapers substituted an old Doonesbury comic instead of the regularly scheduled strip because it contained the word "masturbation" in reference to a study released earlier this year that reported regular masturbation can decrease the risk of prostate cancer. via Romenesko.